Justified
by SherlockXHolmes23
Summary: Tony and Ziva are in mirroring positions, each going through their own hell. They are only separated by the swinging doors of the hospital, and they would do anything to go back to the way it was before. Before everything took a turn for the worst.


Author's Notes: First attempt at writing NCIS fanfiction. I've been wanting to write something like this for a while, but I never found any inspiration.. until now. :) Hope you like it. Spoilers for Aliyah.

Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS. I do, however, own a hoard of nutter butters that would make even McGee proud.

* * *

><p>She tried to protect him. Tried to protect him from the man whom she thought had her best interests at heart. Ziva David had never been more wrong in her life.<p>

She thought she could protect him, thought that maybe if she called Hadar, then everything would be alright. But no… everything has been torn to pieces right in front of her eyes. Michael was shot… by someone she knew very well. Ziva still cannot get the image of Michael on her living room floor, bleeding… and Tony on the floor as well, still holding his gun. The gun he used to shoot Michael.

"Excuse me, Ms. David?" The doctor grabs a hold of her attention, and she cannot help the stiffening of her back and the sagging of her shoulders when the doctor tells her that Michael is dead.

NCISNCISNCISNCIS

Tony glances up and down the hallway, as if he's checking whether or not Ziva will catch him staring at her. Only when he realizes that she is focused on her own thoughts does he move closer to the doors that are separating them.

He wants to enter the room, to break down the doors, but he knows he can't. Not just because of medical procedure, but because he doesn't know what will happen between them. Tony knows that whatever it is, it won't be good.

He sees the doctor approach Ziva and his face hardens into an unreadable expression. It's not like Tony hasn't killed anyone before but… but this felt different than any ordinary shoot-out with a suspect. Then again, it wasn't any ordinary suspect either. Michael was Ziva's lover, her boyfriend, her… whatever you want to call it. Either way, Tony knew that there was no way that Ziva would ever forgive him for this. There was no way in hell.

He can practically feel Gibbs behind him, but Tony makes no move to face his boss. His eyes are focused on Ziva, and only Ziva. "Tony..." Gibbs murmurs, trying to get his attention.

"I'm okay. Got a fractured radius and a couple of bruises but…" He pauses; transfixed by the woman that's standing a couple of feet away. He continues, "I had new Intel. I went to talk to Ziva, question Ziva…"

"DiNozzo."

"When I got there, Rivkin attacked me and I had no choice." Tony says, his tone harsh. He finally turns to face Gibbs. To his surprise, Gibbs isn't angry. In fact, his face is clean of all emotions. A trait that Tony is somewhat envious of. Maybe if he could control his emotions, make it so that it he's unreadable to even Ziva, then maybe none of this would have happened.

"DiNozzo." There's a way that Gibbs says his name.. Almost like a term of endearment, but Tony knows that now is definitely not the time for endearments. There's something else in the way Gibbs says it, but Tony doesn't know what.

"It was justified." Those three words are what Gibbs wants to hear. He doesn't want to hear about Tony's mistakes, the ones that get him into trouble. It was his mistake that led to an angry Ziva and a dead Mossad officer, his mistake that led to Jenny's death… His mistake that led him to a broken heart and a lover's quarrel.

"Go write it up. They're going to be a lot of people wanting answers." Answers that only Tony could provide. Ziva would no doubt want to know why he was in her apartment, arresting her boyfriend… And the other officers of Mossad, of course, would want to know why one of their key men was killed by an American federal agent. Tony was no looking forward to those questions…even if Gibbs was the one who was asking the questions.

He watched Gibbs go through the sliding doors, all the while wishing he could do the same. Just before the doors close though, he hears Ziva speak. The first words out of her mouth are, "Rivkin is dead. Tony killed him."

Tony takes a sharp breath of air and continues down the hallway, trying not to think about what's coming next. Whatever it is though, it won't be good. He knows that for sure.


End file.
